The lotus flower is legendary. It is the flower of perfection, and it spans across many religious myths all around the world, but most particularly in India. Because of its association with perfection, it is associated closely with creation, with newness and life. Hence the significance and symbolism of lotus flower tattoos!
It is equated to strength, to beating the odds to emerge beautiful, strong and victorious. And it’s easy to see why.
The lotus flower begins its life as a little flower at the bottom of a pond, right in the muck and mud. It starts to grow upwards as it reaches for the light and it doesn’t stop growing until it breaks the water’s surface. Once it has broken through, it begins to flower. The blooms are beautiful. The petals uncurl slowly, luxuriating in the sunshine and the fresh air. Lotus flowers have a longer lifespan that other flowers, and therefore are equated with those who last a long time despite the difficulties around them.
These are some of the reasons why lotus flower tattoos have become so popular – they are symbolic of emerging from difficulties to bask in the glory of success and to stay there too.
There are religious connotations of the lotus flower, especially in Buddhism and Hinduism. It is a representation of spiritual awakening. There is a variation in meaning between the 2 religions, but they are both very keen to stress the significance of the lotus flower.
Spiritual awakening has suddenly taken the world by storm, after being locked in India for a long time. Many people have discovered its value and are keen to achieve spiritual awakening. This explains why some may choose to express their search through lotus flower tattoos.
For a lot of people in modern times who have had to struggle through life and have finally made it, lotus flower tattoos may be their way of telling this to the world – that they won despite all odds.
There is yet another religious association of the lotus flower, and many people who have lotus flower tattoos may offer you this as their explanation. The lotus is shaped like a vulva, the female reproductive area that opens up to release new life. In ancient religions, it is associated with birth and life, the newness and the continuity of it. Every living thing is given life by another and life keeps going on. A lot of deities are depicted next to this ancient flower, and many of these were gods and goddesses of reproduction and life. Lotus flower tattoos may therefore depict the acknowledgement of life as divine, something to be lived as fully as one can and not to be wasted.
You may decide to get a lotus flower tattoo for any or all of the reasons listed above. They are very popular with tattoo enthusiasts. Many people who sport multiple tattoos will usually have one or more lotus flower tattoos sitting somewhere. Some people decide to have a lone lotus flower tattoo and that’s enough, especially if they have been through a hard time and can now look back and reflect that it helped them get where they are. Whatever the reasons, the associations with the lotus flower are all respectful of life and full of encouragement that one should keep going no matter what.
Lotus flower tattoo designs are numerous, and you may want to find out if your specific choice has a meaning other than the ones expressed here. There are catalogues on the web that give different tattoo sketches and their meanings. Skim through these as you decide whether within lotus flower tattoos there is a design that’s definitely suited for you.